Favor

This last week Mac, the worship pastor, and I went to pick up a drum set. The add on craigslist said $100, as the mom wanted the drum set out of her life asap. Mac called and said we can come right now and asked if she would be up for taking $75. She repliled by saying yes, so we decided to go right away and pick it up.

When we got to the home we noticed a bumper sticker from Calvary Chapel in SB...when I walked into the house I asked if her family attended Calvary and she responded with a yes. I then shared that we were from IV Church and I was the pastor and Mac was the worship leader. As soon as I said that she said we could just have the drum set. Ah, the goodness and favor of God.

In a church located in a college town these kind of gifts from God are greatly appreciated and a reminder of His faithfulness to His church and IV. This picture is from this Sunday, with Erik on the new drum set. We are still meeting in our backyard...we move to the church building at the end of September, the family is excited as we are getting a bit full with Santa Barbara City College returning last week.

9 Years of Love

Today marks 9 years of being married...it has been by far the best years of my life (hopefully Holly can say the same)!

In these 9 years we have had 4 wonderful children and we absolutely love the life we have been called to live together...I can't say it has been easy, but I can easily say it has been worth it! God has been faithful to us and faithful in growing our love for one another..I am way more in love with Holly today than when we first got married!

Holly and I are finding that married life only gets better every year...growing more and more into the one flesh that Jesus promised us when we entered into the covenant of marriage on August 17th, 2002.

"and the two shall become one flesh. So they are no longer two but one flesh." - Jesus

Here is the home that Holly and I first met at in 2001...it's located in IV on Sabado Tarde. It was love at first sight, just playing...our love grew with time, not sight, and has only continued to grow over the years!

I love you Holly, happy 9 years today Beautiful!

* bottom right corner is the unit we met in

Problems in Life

Jesus will not end all the problems in your life, but He will walk through them with you.

There is a subtle pervasive lie today that tells us if we believe in Jesus we will not experience problems in life...that if we can arrive to a certain place of maturity or order our life in a certain way we can avoid problems.

However, we never see this in Scripture - from the OT to the NT it is full of conflict, problems, and trials. The life of Jesus was full of them and the apostle Paul lived a life that was never without them:

"Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches." (2 Cor 11:24-28)

Life is hard, challenging, and scary at times...there is nothing easy about it if we are really going to live it and face the curve balls that get thrown at us. However, the good news is that we have a God who promised to walk with us through each of them, even when we strike out along the way.

Problems are a common denominator to life, not an abnormality. Our faith is not about arriving at a state of utopia, it's about facing the life we are living...knowing that God uses problems to grow us, love us, and make us more like Him.

We all have core values we live from, regardless if we know that or not. One of my core values in life is never to waste my trials...knowing that they come from a good and sovereign God. I never pray or ask God for them, though they come all the time into my life. One of the ways I allow God to use them is by letting them remind me that life doesn't have to go my way...less of me, more of Him.

It's a good reminder to remember that Jesus is our Savior for a reason...we all need to be saved daily, as we have daily, if not hourly, problems we are facing. This shirt is a depiction of the mindset we need to shift from: mindset that thinks that once we come to Jesus all of our problems will be eliminated.


I get the shirt, as long as it's not saying push the Jesus button and problems in your life will be no more.

Here are two great verses about what problems can do in one's life if we choose not to waste them:

"And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us." (Romans 5:3-5)

"Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." (James 1:2-4)

* If you are overly familiar with these verses check them out in The Message Bible

Our Home & The Sunday Gathering Home

This is a picture of our home that we have lived in the last 4 years in IV. We have such an amazing testimony of how God provided it for us last minute, the amazing landlords He gave us, the location, and so much more...God is good, beyond good!

Over the last 10 years IVC has probably met in over 20 locations (IV Elementary, IV Theater, Embarcadero Hall, homes, parks, the beach, the prayer shed, the study shed, our backyard, etc.). Last year and this coming year we have been given permission to meet at the church building located on our street about 3 homes away.

"One generation will praise Your works to another, and will declare
Your mighty acts." (Psalm 145:4)

Joanna Joy

Our friend Ashleigh took this picture at the family gathering (IV Church) yesterday...Joanna Joy has been nothing but joy and love since she has been born. This picture is funny, not sure what she was doing?

IV Culture

Isla Vista is our promise land! It is a land where we believe we will see the glory of God in a tangible and real way one day...a city that will one day no longer be known for its infamous parties, but for its radical love of Jesus!

Holly and I feel beyond honored to be called to this city, neither one of us picked it, our Father picked it for us...though like all things, He knew what would be best for His kingdom, our family, and this city. We are stoked for another year of seeing heaven touch earth in this land!

Here are a few pictures taken by our friend Josh Morton of IV culture: